Editor’s Notes: Jackie Boy will have its Toronto premiere at the Royal Cinema as part of the 10th Canadian Film Festival on April 1st 2016 at 9:30pm.
Jackie Boy, Cody Campanale’s electrifying feature debut, is an ingenious act of subversion that fully commits to a garish, off-putting opening which later reveals the true intention broiling beneath its stylishly nihilistic surface. We open to Jack (Alino Giraldi in his first narrative-film performance) in a small, reasonably quiet bar. He strikes an imposing, lumbering figure as flashes of neon radiate along his classically handsome face. His eyes meet that of a young woman; her fate is now sealed. This is Jack’s hunting ground, and he’s just chosen his prey. They flirt, laugh and take an obscene number of drugs before arriving back at the womanizer’s non-descript apartment. Jack is awoken the morning after, then proceeds to upload evidence of the night before across his bedfellow’s social media.
A hazy-eyed exchange with friends Kal and Tony sets out the uneasy relationship between the trio: Kal delights in their misogynistic antics, perhaps more so than Jack finds comfortable, whilst Tony is unsettled by their apparent lack of remorse. Jackie Boy at first presents an immediately disreputable protagonist, the film’s clinical gaze refusing to pass judgement. Yet, along a gripping and hugely satisfying journey, Campanale unpeels this façade to reveal an unfettered humanity beneath the amoral alpha-male posturing.
. . . along a gripping and hugely satisfying journey, Campanale unpeels this façade to reveal an unfettered humanity beneath the amoral alpha-male posturing.
Not long after this brief encounter of sorts, Jack meets the fiery, mysterious, beautiful woman of his dreams. Jasmine, played memorably by additional debutant Shannon Coulter, sees through the image Jack presents of himself, allowing him to do the same. Jack has fallen into an aimless whirlwind of drink, drugs and anonymous trysts, but this is not a natural calling. He fills his materialistic urges in an ill-judged effort to fill the emotional splinters of this empty vessel he has become. It’s only when he finds true happiness, in the shape of Jasmine and their deeply felt connection that he can break free from his self-destructive cycle.
The central romance blossoms naturally, the leads’ easy chemistry and their free-flowing dialogue leave a tangible sense of genuine warmth between them. Meanwhile, the volatile Kal, infuriated by Jack’s perceived betrayal, manipulates Tony into a horrific plot to regain their supposed friend’s former, reckless self. This culminates in a horrifying finale, where Jack’s past comes back to haunt him in unpredictable, shockingly brutal fashion. The initially jarring tonal shift from a measured, understated romantic thriller to violent (even horror-inflected) exploitation is nonetheless a fitting destination to Jack’s voyage in search of meaning. The result may not be perfect, but it’s the best he has learnt to hope for.
Our central pairing is more than compelling enough to sustain the film’s 87-minute runtime, though the mesmeric intensity of Edward Charette as Kal creates a superb contrast.
Our central pairing is more than compelling enough to sustain the film’s 87-minute runtime, though the mesmeric intensity of Edward Charette as Kal creates a superb contrast. Andrew di Rosa is fittingly empathetic as the pitiful Tony, whose own insecurities and romantic woes only exacerbate his animosity towards the flourishing Jack.
An absorbing Greek tragedy via the modern Canadian suburbs, Jackie Boy is a hugely impressive breakthrough for Campanale and his talented cast. It’s a tender, visceral and confidently handled romantic thriller, alongside a fascinating, at times troubling, view on emotional insecurity and fragile notions of masculinity.
An absorbing Greek tragedy via the modern Canadian suburbs, Jackie Boy is a hugely impressive breakthrough for Campanale and his talented cast. It’s a tender, visceral and confidently handled romantic thriller, alongside a fascinating, at times troubling, view on emotional insecurity and fragile notions of masculinity.
